Sugar is a vital part of the diet of male and female mosquitoes (Culicidae), sand flies (Phlebotomidae) and other sugar feeding insects, whether they are blood-sucking insects or whether they are non blood-sucking insects. Odors indicating sugars, emanate from rotting fruits, ripe fruits, sugar cane, honey, fermentation, scents of flowers and combination of the above. Sugar can also be found in nectar from flowers, from nectaries on leaves and stems, and honeydew excreted by homopterans [reviews by Yuval, B. 1992. The other habit: sugar feeding by mosquitoes. Bul. Soc. Vector Ecol. 17, 150-156. Foster, W. A. 1995. Mosquito sugar feeding and reproductive energetics. Ann. Rev. Entomol. 40, 443-474.]
A safe and fast acting method for controlling sugar-feeding insects, especially mosquitoes and sand flies is needed, in order to prevent transmission of diseases like malaria and eliminating bites and itching caused by such insects.
Current control methods include:                source reduction the removal of mosquito breeding habitats;        habitat modification        manipulating habitats to reduce breeding;        biocontrol: introducing natural predators of mosquitoes; larvicide        using pesticides to reduce larval populations;        adulticide: using pesticides to reduce adult populations.        
Source reduction can include overturning a tin can filled with water, or complex as permanently draining marshes.
Habitat modification, such as draining marshes or manipulating daily water flows can reduce mosquito populations but large-scale programs can be harmful to the ecosystem. Biological control is the use of natural enemies to manage mosquito populations. Effective biocontrol agents include predatory fish that feed on mosquito larvae such as Gambusia affinis and other small fish species.
Larval control can be achieved by dispersing dead spores of the natural soil bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis, especially Bt israelensis (BTI). BTI is used to interfere in the digestion systems of larvae. BTI can be dispersed by hand or dropped by helicopter in large areas.
Oils that increase the water tension of a water surface can be used as larvicides. Use of these oils causes the larvae and pupae to drown pupae because they cannot break the surface to obtain air. Such oils can be toxic or non-toxic.
Adulticide, using ground or aerial application of chemical pesticides, is less effective than the other methods of mosquito control and is generally considered a method of last resort. Ultra low volume (ULV) spraying of Malathion has been used in metropolitan areas like New York City to decrease the mosquito population and prevent the spread of West Nile Virus. Mosquitoes also have diseases that are caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, and microsproidia but none of them is being used for control.
The most effective solutions for malaria control efforts in the third world are: mosquito nets, particularly nets treated with the insecticides permethrin or DDT. Nets are treated with insecticide because mosquitoes can sometimes get past an imperfect net.
Typically, a bait station device is employed to deliver an insecticide for the control of mosquitoes and other blood sucking flies. A number of bait stations and other devices of the like have been described in the art. For example, EP1477061 discloses an apparatus including an insect-collecting bag impregnated with an insecticide. The bag is connected to a suction inlet, suction action is effected by means of a motor-driven unit, A series of high luminosity LEDs and chemical action attracts the insects towards the entrance inlet subject to the suction action for their collection in the inner bag with insecticidal effect.
FR2851721 discloses a portable device for destruction of biting flying insects, which uses battery-powered electric motor with flexible cutter line attached to rotor.
WO2004093538 presents a long lasting insect baiting system containing wax (e.g., paraffin, GulfWax), a hardener (e.g., Elvax-60), an emulsifier (e.g., SPAN 60), an oil (e.g., food oils (preferably related to insect feeding) such as corn oil, molasses, glycerol or corn syrup), a chemical attractant (e.g., ammonium acetate or carbonate) and a phagostimulant (e.g., food such as proteinaceous materials such as protein and hydrolyzed protein or feeding stimulant, such as sugars like sucrose), optionally a visual attractant (e.g., food coloring), and optionally a toxicant (e.g., avermectin, methomyl, spinosad, phloxine B).
U.S. Pat. No. 6,821,526 discloses a device for controlling insects reservoir [of what? and absorbent material having a lower portion covered by non-absorbent material, and an upper portion with an insecticide.
WO2004012505 discloses methods for controlling insects using an insect bait useful to attract and control insects e.g. ants, flies, silverfish and cockroaches. The bait includes amino acids, a sugar and a preservative. The bait can be combined with an insect toxicant to effectively control and eliminate insect populations.
Studies by Muller & Schlein, 2006 [Müller G. and Schlein Y. 2006. Sugar questing mosquitoes in arid areas gather on scarce blossoms that can be used for control. Int. J. Parasitol. 36: 1077-1080], tested the whole population of Anopheles sergentii which was eliminated when lured by the fragrance of the flowers the mosquitoes fed on the poisonous sugar solution.
There is a need for a new approach for the control of sugar feeding insects, specifically mosquitoes and sand flies, by a different method of attraction.
The term “attractant” as used herein refers to an volatile chemical that causes in responsive organisms an olfactory signal to move along the increasing gradient towards the source of emanation. The “attractant” are blood-sucking flies in general, and in particular mosquitoes and sand flies.